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To Those That Hate The Sense Launcher

Download NovaLauncher. It's the best launcher app I have ever used. It builds upon the regular Ice Cream Sandwich launcher and is just about perfect to me.

If you dont like it can you just un-install it and everything will go back to the way it was before?

equlizer said:
If you dont like it can you just un-install it and everything will go back to the way it was before?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The launcher cannot be uninstalled. You're just using a 3rd party one. The 3rd part one can be uninstalled and it will revert back to the Sense launcher

I have found apex to be much better on my gs2. I am content with Rosie for now.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

I'm using Apex

This is the first time Ive used Sense... well I used the first generation of it back when it was TouchFlo3D. I actually like it. Much better than TouchWiz.

The only downside is no sense widgets.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

i tried all 3
i think i like Go launcher the best

I find Go Launcher to be so ugly. I prefer Apex a lot more and I'll be putting it on my One X as soon as it arrives.

I prefer Nova over all because it's a ICS themed launcher. That's the deal breaker to me.

x3phyr said:
I prefer Nova over all because it's a ICS themed launcher. That's the deal breaker to me.
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what do you think apex is?
and it doesnt require you to buy an upgrade to get full use out of it....

hasneverusedapex.jpg
lol, I will check it out though for sure. I apologize for my ignorance.
EDIT: Nova and Apex both have you pay to get basically the same features, at the same price. lol.

Pirateghost said:
what do you think apex is?
and it doesnt require you to buy an upgrade to get full use out of it....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This! APEX is better overall than Nova... AND ITS COMPLETELY FREE.

*Nova Launcher Prime Features (Paid version)*
Drawer Groups:
Folders in App Drawer
Unlimited custom tabs
Gestures
Quickly start Nova Actions or Apps from gestures on the desktop, such as pinching, swiping or two-finger swiping.
Hide Apps
Keep a clutter free drawer by hidding never used apps.
Dock Swipes
Get more use out of your dock apps by setting swipe-actions
Apex Launcher Pro (Paid Version) Features:
- Multiple configurable drawer tabs
- Unread count notifications
- Dock swipe gestures
- Two finger gestures
- More transition effects
- Batch add option for folders
- Option to merge folder contents
- Widgets in dock (1x1 only)
- Overlapping widgets
- More features on the way!
They share some features only available in the pro version, but I think I am indeed going to try Apex as it seems the general consensus is that it's better xD

x3phyr said:
hasneverusedapex.jpg
lol, I will check it out though for sure. I apologize for my ignorance.
EDIT: Nova and Apex both have you pay to get basically the same features, at the same price. lol.
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Click to collapse
except, its an OUT OF THE WAY upgrade. if i try to add something to my homescreen or make changes, it doesnt tell me 'sorry, you have to pay money to get that feature'
the 'pro' features arent teased in the launcher like nova
thats why i prefer apex over nova. its not in my face to buy it.....(not that i dont support devs, but i have no use for those features)

That's a very reasonable opinion. lol. I'm getting Apex all set up right now just to see. I understand what yo mean with the in yo face kinda deal.

I've used both Apex and Nova on previous ICS phones. I'll be sticking with the Sense launcher until we have an AOSP based build

x3phyr said:
That's a very reasonable opinion. lol. I'm getting Apex all set up right now just to see. I understand what yo mean with the in yo face kinda deal.
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LOL.
to be completely honest, i didnt even know APEX had a pro version until you said something....i definitely like that fact. LMAO

I basically just love this phone to death completely. No matter what launcher. but I will love it more when i have AOSP, AOKP, or MIUI on it.

Messaging lag when using theme.

Seems like when using a theme, the stock messaging has a little lag. Believe me, I see no other lag with the phone!
Wonder if there's a way to fix that?

vibrantliker said:
Seems like when using a theme, the stock messaging has a little lag. Believe me, I see no other lag with the phone!
Wonder if there's a way to fix that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought I was going nuts - nice to know it isn't just me.

Theme lag
vibrantliker said:
Seems like when using a theme, the stock messaging has a little lag. Believe me, I see no other lag with the phone!
Wonder if there's a way to fix that?[/QUOTE
I have the same issue. I had to delete the theme. I also noticed that even though I was running Google launcher the Samsung theme was still part of the launcher. Home page was Google launcher but settings and calendar still had the theme. I went back to default theme TouchWiz and my Google launcher home screen stays the same but the settings menu changed and the calendar. So I guess you can run the themes with a different launcher installed it all seems half thought out. It really screwed my phone up until I did a reboot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Does it do it on multiple themes
BADASS NOTE 5 & 4 & LG G4

[Q] Impact of Themes and Google Now

Hello everybody!
I'm interested in buying the Mate 8 but still have a few question I weren't able to find answers to.
I currently own a Nexus 5 and like the clean look of stock Android.
First questions are in regards to themes.
1. Do they still apply when you change the launcher or this somehow linked to the EMUI stock launcher?
2. Can you change the dropdown menu (notifications and quick settings) with these themes, too, in order to make it more like stock Android? Screenshots of the dropdown menu are rarely given.
3. How easy is it to create themes by oneself?
All in all I'd like to have a clean stock look as especially these bubbles around the icons are a pain to my eyes.
I would prefer to NOT have to flash a custom ROM.
The second part of my questions is in regard to Google Now.
1. Do you have the Google Now cards available?
2. Is Google Now on Tap working?
I hope you guys can enlighten me
Thanks in advance! :fingers-crossed:

SCHMANKii said:
Hello everybody!
I'm interested in buying the Mate 8 but still have a few question I weren't able to find answers to.
I currently own a Nexus 5 and like the clean look of stock Android.
First questions are in regards to themes.
1. Do they still apply when you change the launcher or this somehow linked to the EMUI stock launcher?
2. Can you change the dropdown menu (notifications and quick settings) with these themes, too, in order to make it more like stock Android? Screenshots of the dropdown menu are rarely given.
3. How easy is it to create themes by oneself?
All in all I'd like to have a clean stock look as especially these bubbles around the icons are a pain to my eyes.
I would prefer to NOT have to flash a custom ROM.
The second part of my questions is in regard to Google Now.
1. Do you have the Google Now cards available?
2. Is Google Now on Tap working?
I hope you guys can enlighten me
Thanks in advance! :fingers-crossed:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Do they still apply when you change the launcher or this somehow linked to the EMUI stock launcher?
EMUI themes still apply when you change launchers. You can set your custom icons on the launcher desktop, but the themed icon will still appear in other places like the recent apps screen or in notifications. So you will still see ugly rounded square or circle boarder with your icons outside of your launcher desktop. Fortunately this can be solved by installing custom EMUI theme with stock icons, which you can find here: http://foerster.io/hack-huawei-enable-pure-icons-with-no-borders-backgrounds-etc/
2. Can you change the dropdown menu (notifications and quick settings) with these themes, too, in order to make it more like stock Android? Screenshots of the dropdown menu are rarely given.
Themes can change the dropdown menu to a certain extent, mostly changing the shortcut icons. I've yet to see any theme that can make the dropdown menu look completely stock, I don't think it's possible because they operate differently. To me the EMUI dropdown UI looked decent enough (albeit in a different style) so I don't mind it so much.
3. How easy is it to create themes by oneself?
Don't know, never tried it myself.
1. Do you have the Google Now cards available?
I have the international version of the phone (L29), most google services are pre-installed including google now cards. If you get the Chinese version you'll have to install google services yourself, which I heard is a fairly easy process.
2. Is Google Now on Tap working?
You can turn on the now on tap function in google cards settings, but it doesn't seem to work when I long press the home button.
Please note that I'm still on an early EMUI build (B103) and have not yet received any OTA, I don't know if later updates changes anything.
Overall I did get a fairly decent looking UI running on my mate 8. Some UI elements will remain in EMUI style (most notably recent apps and notification dropdown and settings screen) as you can't change those without a custom ROM or at least some root hack, but I don't mind those too much, in fact I liked some of the EMUI design. The worse part of EMUI 4.0 is the launcher and the forced icon background on 3rd party apps, but like I said earlier these can all be averted with 3rd party launcher and custom theme. If you're a diehard fans for the "stock-look" who won't accept any non-material design element then this may not be good enough for you, but it is good enough for me.

@beachletter
Thank you a million times, Sir!
So did I get this right and you also tried to achieve a more or less stock look?
If so, could you please provide screenshots of your dropdown menu and maybe of your homescreen?
Did you own a Nexus phone before the Mate 8, too?
Regarding the dropdown menu of notifications: if I understand it correctly it's more or less working like a timeline, not like on other phones. This can't be changed, can it? I guess I know the answer as themes are supposed to only change the look and not the way things work, but yeah...

This is what my ui looks like after getting custom launcher and material design icon theme.
Sent from my HUAWEI NXT-L29 using XDA Free mobile app

SCHMANKii said:
@beachletter
Thank you a million times, Sir!
So did I get this right and you also tried to achieve a more or less stock look?
If so, could you please provide screenshots of your dropdown menu and maybe of your homescreen?
Did you own a Nexus phone before the Mate 8, too?
Regarding the dropdown menu of notifications: if I understand it correctly it's more or less working like a timeline, not like on other phones. This can't be changed, can it? I guess I know the answer as themes are supposed to only change the look and not the way things work, but yeah...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like stock icons and stock recent apps screen, but for notification and quick settings drop down I actually liked EMUI's implementation. I used CM and other near-stock rom in my previous phones.
See the post above for screenshots.

Alright, thanks again!
Now I have most of the information I can possibly get to make the right decision. Hopefully I will

Okay, so I've bought a Mate 8 to test things.
While it is really well designed, is nice to hold and snappy as well, I still can't get myself to like the software that much.
I have tried to apply the theme @beachletter provided but it somehow doesn't apply correctly and therefore many icons still have that bubble around it (e.g. Chrome, Play Store). Dialer and Contacts are still the same icons.
Regarding Google Now on Tap: this functionality was added with B152 firmware update which immediately showed up while setting up the device.
Additionally I have to say that the horizontal scrolling in the recent apps menu is even more unintuitive than I've thought it would be.

SCHMANKii said:
Okay, so I've bought a Mate 8 to test things.
While it is really well designed, is nice to hold and snappy as well, I still can't get myself to like the software that much.
I have tried to apply the theme @beachletter provided but it somehow doesn't apply correctly and therefore many icons still have that bubble around it (e.g. Chrome, Play Store). Dialer and Contacts are still the same icons.
Regarding Google Now on Tap: this functionality was added with B152 firmware update which immediately showed up while setting up the device.
Additionally I have to say that the horizontal scrolling in the recent apps menu is even more unintuitive than I've thought it would be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's strange, on my phone the dialer and contacts have separate icons (although I usually don't use contacts because I can quick dial any name in dialer to search my contact list) , and I don't see any icon background/border for chrome or play store.
Maybe you should check out the newest version of the theme here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/rooting-roms/hack-enable-pure-icons-borders-t3315731
and FYI the launcher I use is NOVA Prime
Good to know google now is back in B152. Unfortunately my phone doesn't get any OTA update above B103 yet. But at least there's no camera focusing issue on my phone, even with B103.

beachletter said:
That's strange, on my phone the dialer and contacts have separate icons (although I usually don't use contacts because I can quick dial any name in dialer to search my contact list) , and I don't see any icon background/border for chrome or play store.
Maybe you should check out the newest version of the theme here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/general/rooting-roms/hack-enable-pure-icons-borders-t3315731
and FYI the launcher I use is NOVA Prime
Good to know google now is back in B152. Unfortunately my phone doesn't get any OTA update above B103 yet. But at least there's no camera focusing issue on my phone, even with B103.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not that bad anymore. I installed Nova Prime as well and added icon packs to fit my preferences.
But with the new theme it's working, even in the status bar! Thanks for providing the link!

SCHMANKii said:
It's not that bad anymore. I installed Nova Prime as well and added icon packs to fit my preferences.
But with the new theme it's working, even in the status bar! Thanks for providing the link!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually I just switched to this theme which seems to have a more comprehensive set of material design icons:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/mate-7/themes-apps/theme-material-emui-predaturd-p-kulkes-t3265917
You may want to give it a try.

launchers

What launchers works for.you guys, i have nova and launcher 3 , i tried computer launcher but you cant re size it and thatt makes it useless to me, are there any side launchers around, i used to like those alot

Action launcher here is better than Launcher3.

After some crash issues with Launcher3...even though i used it for many years. I switched to the paid version of Nova launcher to allow for more customization and backups of the desktop.
Rick
BlackIce

I've been using Pixel 2 Launcher, MS Launcher and Lawnchair. The reason I flip between them is because I like them all.

I also went with Nova Prime and I'm pretty damn happy with it. I found it very customizable and easy to navigate through.

Lawnchair. I was a Nova user, but Lawnchair is now my favorite.

The pixel 2 launcher is my daily. The dark theme is the best to me. Makes everything look crisp. Especially the dark Google side page.

benlee337 said:
The pixel 2 launcher is my daily. The dark theme is the best to me. Makes everything look crisp. Especially the dark Google side page.
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Click to collapse
I like the look of that launcher. Can you tell me where you got it?

I like lawnchair but it doesn't support full screen on the Essential. I'm now using Microsoft launcher.

Murbert said:
I like lawnchair but it doesn't support full screen on the Essential. I'm now using Microsoft launcher.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried it recently? I was using it until last night, and it was full screen. I found the no root Pixel 2 launcher, so I'm trying that for now. I'm not sure how I feel about the new Google Now.

I am kinda digging the Pixel 2 launcher... Although to be honest it isn't much different than the stock launcher...

Another happy Nova user here, has been using it on various Android phones and seems to be the best so far...

Nova Prime on my PH-1

I'd like to see some screenshots from these various launchers running on a PH-1.
I know they're all very customizable, so maybe screenshots won't be so useful. Still, I'd like to get an idea of what they look like.
(I've bought a PH-1, but I want actually get my hands on it till Christmas, which is why I can't try these out myself -- yet.)

ive had the paid NOVA for years as its a go to , its very customizable, used use zeam when it was around , launcher 3 is ok , i may have to try lawn chair

I use the Pixel 2 launcher, I like the Microsoft launcher, but very frequently when I leave an app or hit the home button the launcher screen has no icons, no widgets, nothing, like it hung... I'd use it exclusively if I didn't have this problem. I'm wondering if it's cause of the Oreo beta... so I'm looking forward to beta 2 to see if that clears up.

varxx said:
I know they're all very customizable, so maybe screenshots won't be so useful. Still, I'd like to get an idea of what they look like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Screenshots won't help. It's things like gesture support, swipe for Google now page, custom icon packs that make a difference. And in the case of essential, support for the whole screen.
MS launcher has everything but Google now

Murbert said:
Screenshots won't help. It's things like gesture support, swipe for Google now page, custom icon packs that make a difference. And in the case of essential, support for the whole screen.
MS launcher has everything but Google now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
O.K., thanks. I see what you mean, i.e., the differences are much more than cosmetic.

benlee337 said:
The pixel 2 launcher is my daily. The dark theme is the best to me. Makes everything look crisp. Especially the dark Google side page.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does the weather work on this and also does the swipe left for Google cards etc work ,if so I would swap to this ,any download links please
Sent from my PH-1 using XDA Labs

Remove date from Pixel 2 home screen?

Is it possible to remove the date and weather area on the pixel 2 home screen? It takes up a full row!

I also want this defeated.. maybe via substratum???

Nope, you will need to switch to another launcher, like Nova.

Nova has been sluggish for me. I'm not sure why.

Ives314 said:
Nova has been sluggish for me. I'm not sure why.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah that's odd. Nova has been perfect for me. @upperbladez There's also Lawn Chair Launcher on XDA that's a modified Pixel Launcher. You could try that. https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/lawnchair-customizable-pixel-launcher-t3627137

JRJ442 said:
Yeah that's odd. Nova has been perfect for me. @upperbladez There's also Lawn Chair Launcher on XDA that's a modified Pixel Launcher. You could try that. https://forum.xda-developers.com/android/apps-games/lawnchair-customizable-pixel-launcher-t3627137
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've heard other launchers are slow or buggy. Can you comment on the stability of it?

upperbladez said:
I've heard other launchers are slow or buggy. Can you comment on the stability of it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't tried that one. Personally I use Nova and have been for years. It's always been stellar for me.

My main complaints with Pixel Launcher was that clock app as well as the inability to remove the Google bar at the bottom. I took people's recommendations here and tried Nova Launcher. No complaints...I even decided to pay for Nova Prime so I could enable the gestures and love the 2-tap screen off, using the home button to launch settings, and the swipe down to pull the quick settings. I haven't noticed any notable lag and it doesn't appear to use that much more memory than the Pixel launcher did.

Second Nova. I bought the full version years ago, and it's fantastic.

Well I've been using Nova for years with prime. It's my go to launcher. But lately for some reason. After a day or two. There's this Nast y stutter when I open apps. When I use pixel launcher, it's smooth like it's supposed to be. Even if I close the app and open it right after it still does it. Those things bug me..lol no oun intended. So I'm just waiting for the next update. I was gonna set it up right now without the beta. I'll report back.

Anyone know a launcher which will hide the navbar. I know lineage OS has the option to hide status and/or navbar.. I don't feel like using the adb hack to go immersive mode, would be nice if a launcher offered the option

I wonder if they'll allow you to remove it in Android P. Some things they do are so illogical I don't get it.

upperbladez said:
I wonder if they'll allow you to remove it in Android P. Some things they do are so illogical I don't get it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have DP-3 and it is still there. Things will change with the final 9.0 release but it looks like this is here to stay.

Lol why do they do that? I don't understand

Is this still unale to be removed on android 9? I need to update but have to root it so I'm being lazy.

It's there permanently by default, though of course there are many apps that allow you to toggle immersive mode without root so if you want to hide it it's very simple to do so.